It’s tiiiiiiiiiiiime! Conference championships weekend is upon us and while this one might not be the closest one in terms of rankings, there’s lots of fun things in store.
Oklahoma’s been on top of the standings all season long and minus one loss at Michigan, it hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down. Senior day brought a 10 on vault for Katherine Levasseur and 9.975’s for Ragan Smith and Faith Torrez, earning the Sooners a sweep of the last Big 12 weekly awards for the season. The Sooners will want to maintain the edge they’ve brought all season to take home what could be one of their last Big 12 titles before the big move to the SEC in 2025. Denver has shown steady improvement all season and if the Sooners falter anywhere, the Pioneers have an opportunity to sweep in and take advantage just as they did in 2021. Lynnzee Brown and Jessica Hutchinson have both been perfect for the Pioneers this season and will need to be on their A-game today.
As the home team, West Virginia has steadily climbed the rankings during the second half of the season. It has put itself into a safe position for postseason, but now the goal is to avoid the play-in meet. The Mountaineers are coming off of a double meet weekend away, but scored the third highest team total in program history the last time they were at home. Another performance like that will safely bring them into day 2 of regionals. Kianna Yancey will be one to watch for West Virginia; her all-around program has improved throughout the season. Iowa State, out of the regionals picture as a team, stands to qualify some individuals. Maddie Diab is a likely qualifier on floor, but Kaia Parker could qualify as an individual on vault depending on how she does today. The Cyclones have had a rough season, but will want to go out on a high note with their performance today.
Here we go with lineups! Here is Denver!
Tentative lineups for tonight's meet!
We will start on vault.#GoPios | #NCAAGym pic.twitter.com/rgTb1Fc6CD
— Denver Gymnastics (@DU_Gymnastics) March 18, 2023
Iowa State’s lineups!
https://twitter.com/CycloneGYM/status/1637226167970279424?s=20
Oklahoma’s lineups!
https://twitter.com/OU_WGymnastics/status/1637226949918486528?s=20
Rotation 1: DU vault, WVU bars, ISU beam, OU floor
Yancey UB: Minimal leg separation on the Van Leeuwen, double layout stuck! 9.850.
Brusch VT: Y full, stuck, beautiful form in the air! 9.800.
Thomas BB: Front toss to BHS, small wobble after the BHS, Switch leap to straddle quarter, another small wobble. Some leg separation in the 1.5 twist dismount. 9.700.
Johnson FX: Lacked a little split on the leap, double tuck to close, no feet movement. 9.850.
B. Mabanta VT: Y full, lacked a little distance, small hop back on the landing.
Combs UB: mount on low bar, Maloney to Pak salto, minor leg separation, beautiful final handstand, blind change to double tuck, tiniest hop backwards.
Davis FX: FHS front double twist to open, good control on the landing. Switch half to wolf full, 180 degrees in the air. Back 1.5 to front full, underrotated and low landing.
Hutchinson VT: Y 1.5, good form in the air, large step forward. 9.825.
They just showed Anna Leigh landing her dismount, but suffered a knee injury afterwards. Not good for the Mountaineers.
Mundell VT: Y 1.5, STUCK. And held the landing. The tiniest amount of the knees in the air. 9.950.
R. Smith FX: Double tuck to open, good control on the landing. Back 1.5 to front layout, good height between the elements. Double pike, low chest and hop back on the landing.
Brown VT: Y 1.5, knee form in the air, hop forward on the landing.
Alban UB: Piked Deltchev, missed her grip and fell. That was scary! Remounts on low bar, good bail to handstand, double layout with a stick.
Bowers FX: 2.5 twist to punch front, nailed it. Double pike, good control on that landing as well. Switch half to wolf full leap series.
Didn’t see it but Casali only a 9.175 on vault.
Horowitz BB: Front toss, usually connects that to a BHS, but couldn’t get the connection. Full turn is beautiful. Cat leap to switch half to beat jump, solid connection, falls on the reattempt on the front toss.
Sievers FX: Solid tucked full in to open, great front tuck through to double tuck final pass. Leaps over 180 as she finishes with fun choreography.
Loyim BB: Wobble after the leap series, another wobble after the BHS LOSO. Front aerial to beat jump, better control. Gainer full off the side, stuck.
Torrez FX: Double layout to open, solid landing. Front tuck through to double tuck, high chest and solid landing.
After 1: OU 49.575, DU 49.275, WVU 48.700, ISU 47.525
Well, this is going about how a lot of people expected. Leigh’s injury is unfortunate for West Virginia, so it will be interesting to see who slots in on beam for her. Oklahoma had a solid floor rotation, Denver got to drop a fall, and Iowa State had a slight balance beam situation that it will want to put behind it as quickly as possible.
Rotation 2: OU vault, DU bars, WVU beam, ISU floor
Holmes-Hackerd BB: Cat leap to front aerial to back tuck, spot on. Right in the middle of the beam on her second series as well.
Sievers VT: Y 1.5, STUCK. She has found that landing so many times this season. Some knee bend in the air. 9.950.
Levasseur VT: Lots of distance, step to the side. 9.875.
Pierson BB: Came in mid routine, beat jump was pretty. BHS tucked 1.5, slight step forward on the landing.
Davis VT: Y 1.5, hop forward on the landing. A little bit of knee form in the air.
Rorich UB: mount on high bar, blind change to straddled Jaeger caught with bent arms, bail to handstand was right on top of the bar. Double layout, small hop in place.
Bowers VT: Y 1.5, hop forward on the landing.
Yancey BB: BHS LO LOSO, maybe the tiniest bit of knees in the air. Split leap to straddle quarter, balance check after the straddle. RO 1.5 twist, stuck!
Brown UB: Maloney to Pak salto, no leg separation, Van Leeuwen caught on the fingertips, double layout, slides her feet together on the landing.
Torrez VT: Y 1.5, big step forward on the landing. After Sievers’ stick, no one else has stuck their vault.
Combs BB: Cat leap to front aerial, leg comes off the beam but she stays on. Cat leap to switch side, a little wobbly. Front aerial to back tuck solid connection. Punch front full with a small hop forward.
Trautman VT: Y 1.5, slide of the feet together, but good form in the air. 9.950.
Mundell UB: mount on high bar, Tkatchev slightly bent arms, Bail to handstand is beautiful, double layout, tiniest hop forward.
Maldonado FX: Following Loyim’s 9.900. Front layout to front 1.5, little low on the front 1.5. Double pike, slight movement of the feet. Good toe point on the leaps. 9.850.
Wehry BB: Switch leap to BHS LOSO, leg went up after the layout. Much better on the second switch leap. Comes off the beam on her next series, Combs 9.650 will count. Tucked front full stuck.
Nelson BB: In for Leigh here, she competed in exhibition at LSU last weekend and scored well. BHS LOSO small step back, but kept it on. Cat leap to switch side, little off balance but saved it. Cat leap to side aerial to split jump, lots of pauses throughout. BHS gainer full, small slide of the feet.
Diab FX: FHS front double twist to front layout to one knee, super fun opening pass. Beautiful leap positions in the air. Front layout to front full to stag jump, traveled just a little bit forward on the stag jump. FHS to Rudi to layout step out, loose knees in the landing.
After 2: OU 99.075, Denver 98.575, WVU 97.575, ISU 96.700
All Oklahoma so far! The Sooners didn’t get all the landings they wanted, but bookend 9.950s gave them more of a lead over the Pioneers. Denver started to find landings on bars, while West Virginia rebounded from Leigh’s injury with a solid beam rotation.
Rotation 3: ISU vault, OU bars, DU beam, WVU floor
Brown BB: Front toss to BHS, solid landing. Switch leap to split jump, angle wasn’t good to see if she hit 180. Gainer full off the side, stuck. Good start for the Pioneers.
Palacios VT: Y full, piked hips in the air, hop back on the landing.
Fletcher UB: Piked Jaeger caught with slightly bent arms, Pak salto to the low bar, good position in the air. Half in half out dismount, stuck.
Yancey FX: Double pike, step back on the landing. Good leap positions. Beautiful second pass with the stag jump. Double tuck final pass good control.
Trautman just NAILED a bar routine.
Schlottman BB: In for Ruiz here. Good full turn to open. BHS LOSO, floaty in her connections. Good leap positions in the air. BHS gainer full stuck!
R. Smith UB: Ray release is super high, Pak salto with good form in the air. Double layout, slight leg form in the air, stuck the landing. Announcers noted that Smith and Trautman went out of order, so we’ll see if there was a deduction for that. My guess is probably not.
Thompson BB: Following a 9.950 from Schlottman! Beautiful control on the full turn. Aerial to 1.5 twist, FOUGHT for that landing, but had a low chest.
Pierson FX: WVU is quietly killing it on floor. Good control on the leap series. FHS front layout to front full, lots of height between those elements.
Bowers UB: Beautiful first handstand, floaty on the Pak salto. Half in half out stuck with heel slide.
Mundell BB: BHS LOSO good form in the air. Switch leap balance check, had to cover it, but picked it back up on the remainder of the leap series. Added a side somi with a wobble. RO 1.5 twist. Good job staying on but lots of wobbles throughout.
Davis UB: Higgins roll to piked Jaeger with bent arms. Pak salto to low bar, Higgins roll to double front with a half. Usual leg separation on the double front half.
Hutchinson BB: front toss to BHS, solid landing with high chest. Switch leap to split jump, beautiful control. Solid on the full turn. Cartwheel gainer full with a stick. Good way to end!
Holmes-Hackerd FX: Huge height on the straddle jump on the first pass. Beautiful toe point on the leap series, double pike to close, slide of the front foot back on the landing.
After 3: OU 148.700, Denver 148.100, WVU 146.925, ISU 145.375
Denver is staying close, but Oklahoma keeps pushing further and further ahead. West Virginia is in a solid third place after a 49.475 on floor, while Iowa State mostly stayed on its feet and will look to finish its season on a high note.
Rotation 4: WVU vault, ISU bars, OU beam, DU floor
Yancey VT: Y full, hop back on the landing, clean form in the air.
Ruiz FX: Had a solid landing on the opening pass from the quad box we saw, double pike to close, small slide of the foot. 9.850.
Irwin VT: Y half, knee bend and step back on the landing.
Trautman BB: Good full turn to open. BHS LOSO, looked a little off but corrected it in the air. Cat leap to switch side solid. Front toss, slight wobble to the side. RO 1.5 dismount.
Alban VT: Y full, small hop back, open hips in the air. 9.850.
Bowers BB: Beautiful full turn to open. BHS LOSO spot on. Sissone to switch half, good position in the switch half. RO double twist stuck! Woah. 9.925.
Wehry VT: FHS pike half, some leg separation in the pike, hop back on the landing.
Torrez BB: Wolf jump to open. Side aerial to LOSO spot on. Switch leap to straddle jump, good leap positions. RO 1.5 twist stuck.
Casali had another fall on floor. Not her day today.
B. Mabanta FX: Back 1.5 to front layout, good height between the elements. Good leap positions in the air. Weird landing on the second pass but she somehow saved it.
Davis BB: BHS LOSO series, very floaty. Front aerial, good toe point. Beat jump to split ring, good head release. RO double twist, good landing.
Hutchinson FX: Needs a 10 to tie Bowers for the All-Around. Beautiful landing on her first pass. Back 1.5 to front layout, beautiful landing. Switch half to split full leap series, spot on the positions. Didn’t travel a lot on that straddle jump on the last pass. I’m not sure they’ll go 10 but still beautiful!
R. Smith BB: Front aerial is clean. BHS swingdown is her usual. Good toe point throughout. BHS gainer full with a stick. 10.000. What a way to end it for the Sooners.
Brown FX: Got the arena to herself! Double layout, underrotated with a step forward. Leaps not quite at 180 in the air. 1.5 step out to RO 1.5 punch front. That last pass had a lot in it but she stuck the landing on the punch front!
FINAL: OU 198.400, DU 197.175, WVU 196.225, ISU 193.750
Oklahoma takes back to back Big 12 titles (and set another Big 12 championship record) and Ragan Smith capped it off with a huge 10.000 on beam! Denver was within arms reach, but a low floor number put it a point behind. WVU recovered well after losing Anna Leigh to injury, while Iowa State couldn’t quite get its momentum back after a rough beam rotation to start.
VT: Olivia Trautman, Danielle Sievers (OU) & Rylie Mundell (DU) – 9.950
UB: Audrey Davis & Olivia Trautman (OU) – 9.950
BB: Ragan Smith (OU) – 10.000
FX: Jordan Bowers, Faith Torrez (OU), Jessica Hutchinson (DU) & Maddie Diab (ISU) – 9.950
AA: Jordan Bowers (OU) – 39.700
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Live blog by Savanna Whitten
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